President Donald Trump has pushed to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the \u201cGulf of America\u201d and Lake Ontario to \u201cLake America.\u201d <\/p>\n
Now, get ready for the \u201cGulf of Cleveland.\u201d <\/p>\n
Cleveland\u2019s City Council voted to pass a resolution to rename part of Lake Erie as the \u201cGulf of Cleveland,\u201d a satirical move poking fun at the president\u2019s own renaming efforts. The resolution, spearheaded by council member Kris Harsh, does not have the force of law. A City Council spokesperson said the vote was 13-1. <\/p>\n
In Monday remarks<\/a> at a City Council meeting, Harsh said Trump \u201cis a man who clearly isn\u2019t afraid to say what no one is thinking.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cI feel emboldened to take the extraordinary step of renaming Lake Erie as the Gulf of Cleveland today,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n The move is the latest instance of Trump\u2019s critics pushing back on his unusual moves to rename bodies of water after the U.S. \u2014 or even after himself \u2014 this time through humor. While Trump can order the government to rename the bodies of water in official communications, he does not have the power to force international entities, or everyday Americans, to use the new names. <\/p>\n \u201cKeep in mind, there\u2019s a very real person in Pennsylvania right now who wants to rename it the Lake of Pennsylvania,\u201d Harsh deadpanned in Monday\u2019s speech. \u201cWe cannot, as Ohioans, let the Pennsylvanians get a jump on us. It\u2019s our lake.\u201d<\/p>\n Describing potential pushback, Harsh acknowledged Lake Erie is not a gulf. \u201cAnd I say, \u2018Who cares?\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cListen to me very carefully and jot this down: Words don\u2019t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n Harsh also joked that he wanted Apple and Google to \u201crecognize our sovereignty\u201d and depict the body of water as the \u201cGulf of Cleveland\u201d on their maps \u2014 a jab at the companies\u2019 decisions to change the names on their maps from the Gulf of Mexico to the \u201cGulf of America\u201d and from Lake Ontario to \u201cLake America\u201d following Trump\u2019s orders directing the executive branch to do the same.<\/p>\n \u201cWords don\u2019t matter, but the whims of powerful white men like me do,\u201d Harsh said, satirically.<\/p>\n The White House did not immediately respond to NBC News\u2019 request for comment. <\/p>\n In recent weeks, Trump has also shared a series of social media posts floating the idea of renaming New Mexico as \u201cNew America,\u201d although he cannot unilaterally change the name of a state. <\/p>\n The president\u2019s decision to sign an executive order<\/a> to rename Lake Ontario as \u201cLake America\u201d came amid heightened tensions with Canada after the collapse of trade talks and imposition of tariffs between the two countries. The president\u2019s executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico came on his inauguration day. <\/p>\n The president also recently said he would declare the Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory and floated renaming<\/a> the waterway as the \u201cTrump Strait.\u201d Shipping through the strait, which borders Iran, has significantly dropped since the war with that country began, contributing to a spike in global oil prices. <\/p>\n In another recent satirical jab at Trump\u2019s renaming efforts, the creators of the comedy show \u201cSouth Park\u201d announced last week that they would rename the program to \u201cSouth America\u201d in the upcoming season. <\/p>\n \u201cInspired by the bravery and patriotism of Apple and Google, we are changing the name of South Park to SOUTH AMERICA,\u201d the show announced in a statement<\/a>. <\/p>\n In a Tuesday phone interview, Harsh told NBC News that \u201csometimes it seems like nationally the administration is equal parts cruel and absurd.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs often as they do things that are just heartless and a gut punch to the American people, they turn around and do things that are just so ridiculously absurd you have to scratch your head and wonder if we\u2019re living in a circus or not,\u201d he said, pointing to Trump\u2019s orders to rename the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario.<\/p>\n